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Hiring Degree Apprentices

4 September 2026

Hiring Degree Apprentices

​If there ever was such thing as a Workplace Zodiac, 2019 would forever be known at The ONE Group as the Year of the Apprentice.

Following a thorough and rigorous selection and assessment process at the end of 2018, it was clear that we had secured ourselves some rising stars in the form of fresh and enthusiastic Degree Apprentices, ready to embark on their next huge adventure in the world of recruitment.

Did they understand what they were letting themselves in for? Possibly not.

Did they take a dive into the deep end and sign on the dotted line, anyway? Absolutely.

Having experienced consistent and significant growth since 2004 and now boasting some of the top recruiters in the local marketplace, we knew that we were ready to take on a new challenge and focus our efforts on the very thing that has made us so successful in the first place; our people.

Not only did we want to inject our experienced consultants with new and refreshing training and development opportunities, we wanted to take our future talent potential to a whole new level – this is where the Degree Apprenticeship Programme had us hooked. We were able to select talented individuals with the key competencies required to make it as a successful recruiter and utilise our current knowledge and experienced professionals to support them through their journey.

For us, this was more than just an educational programme, this was an opportunity to pass on industry knowledge, commercial awareness and total business savviness to the future leaders of our industry. It’s often said that running a desk in a recruitment agency is like running your own business, so what better place to nurture and grow the skills required in business than in your very own mini business?

Since our Degree Apprentices joined us in January of this year, they have contributed significantly to the success of their immediate teams, colleagues, and that of the wider business. They’ve created engaging social media content, found new candidates and placed people in their dream jobs. They became more commercially aware by the day, learned about profit margins, terms of business, negotiations and what a good client relationship looks like. And one, Becca, took a leap into our internal marketing team, willing and ready to learn everything she needed to know about how to make our brand the best it can be.

You can’t teach work ethic and dedication, but luckily for us, our Apprentices have shown us that they have these two things in abundance. 5 years later… and I can’t see them slowing down any time soon!

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THE ONE GROUP

Where we're from,
and how we got here

Twenty years of specialist recruitment in the East – and a lot of small decisions that added up.

TOG started in Peterborough in 2004 with a small team and a simple idea: that recruitment is a people business, done best by specialists who stay in their sector long enough to know it properly.

More than two decades on, we've grown into four offices across the East of England and Home Counties. We recruit for finance leaders, HR directors, engineering managers, tech founders, scientists, and the commercial teams that keep businesses running day to day. Between us, we've built up over 258 years of collective recruitment experience across our specialist divisions, and a network of more than 150,000 candidates we've placed, coached, or come to know across two decades in the region.

The founding principle hasn't changed. Recruitment as it should be.

OUR STORY

Key events timeline

2004

Doors open in Peterborough.

Our first office launches with a team of six on Lynch Wood. Cambridge follows the same year, giving us two offices before our first anniversary.

2015

Northampton makes it three.

Our third office opens with a team of five, quickly growing to eleven consultants covering the wider Midlands region.

2017

Peterborough moves across the road.

The team has outgrown the founding office. We move into Arena House on Lynch Wood, big enough for a growing consultant base and the back-office team that supports the whole group.

2018

Cambridge moves too.

Our second office relocates to Cambourne Business Park, giving the growing Cambridge team the space it now needs.

2023

Four offices, three counties, one very good year.

The Hertfordshire & Essex office opens in Potters Bar, extending our footprint into the Home Counties.

In the same year, we're named Business of the Year in Northamptonshire, and Employer of the Year in both Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire at the regional SME Business Awards. Three counties, three panels.

TODAY

Still growing.

Four offices, more than 258 years of collective recruitment experience across our specialist divisions, and a network of over 150,000 candidates.

Same founding principle.

SPECIALISTS BY DESIGN

What we do

We're specialists, not generalists. Every consultant at TOG focuses on one sector and stays in it. Not because it's the only way to do recruitment, but because it's how you build the depth to spot the difference between a strong CV and a strong hire.

It's also why so many of our clients come back to us years, even decades, after a first placement.

01
Accountancy & Finance
→
 02
Human Resources
→
 03
Commercial Office
Administration, customer service, project management and more
→
 04
Technology
→
 05
Engineering & Manufacturing
→
 06
Scientific
→
 07
Sales, Marketing & Creative
→
 08
Executive Search
Across all of the above
→

Beyond the recruitment itself, we produce annual salary guides, regional market reports, and the practical resources our clients and candidates turn to when they want a clearer view of what's happening in their sector.

THE WAY WE WORK

How we work

Four principles show up in every conversation and every process.
01

Be curious.

We stay interested in the market we work in, and in the people who work in it.

02

Keep it human.

We remember your kids' names and know how you take your coffee. That's just how we work here.

03

Make a difference.

We're here to help people build careers they love and businesses they're proud of.

04

Enjoy the ride.

Recruitment is a career, but it should be fun too. If it isn't, we've done something wrong.

WHAT COMES NEXT?

Recruitment
as it should be.

Hire with TOG → Looking for a role →
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